February 18, 2004 - 4:26 AM

You Need a Lesson on How to Spend Money

The running tally so far is 14 hours Thursday, 17 hours Friday, 20 hours Sunday, 19 hours Monday, 18 hours Tuesday, 12 hours (and counting) today, and more to come (probably through next Tuesday). I'll definitely be earning a nice chunky paycheck this month.

What I've realized, though, this past week, is how strange it is for me to be in this job, in this industry, in this city. So much opulence, decadence, glitz and glamour involved, and I don't fit in with that. You should see some of the gaudy jewelry that the people (even some of the employees) around here sport. Heck, during my session, the producer had a jeweler come in to show him some wares, and he bought a $200,000 plus bracelet (35 stones of 2 karats)for around 80 thousand. You'd think that, with all the money he spends on jewels, he'd have some sense of taste. But I guess the nouveau riche, especially those who come from extremely humble beginnings, tend to view bigger as better. Well, let me tell you, when your watch looks like a gold-plated sewer cover (and is about the same size), it's probably time to take some classes on how to be stylishly AND refinedly rich.

Another thing. Our parking lot is currently populated by a Ferrari, a Bentley, a Porsche, several Land Rovers, an Escalade, and a few other hip whips. Whooo. I don't get the having of DVD/TV systems for the DRIVER's enjoyment; I don't get the need for shatteringly loud engines that allow you to go at 200 mph; I don't understand the driving of boats on wheels unless you are off-roading, have a large family to cart around, or do a lot of moving.

Me, I'm happy with a car that will get me from point A to point B with no problems, with good gas mileage, and with a pretty smooth ride. I'm easy like that.

Being around these people who are looking for approval from others based on how shiny their life is makes me shake my head. Why is there so much emphasis on material things? Unnecessary things. I'm not being all Henry Thoreau, advocating the total spartan lifestyle, the going to the woods to suck the marrow out of life and live a mean existence. I'm just saying, money isn't the be all and end all of life. Garish luxury is ugly to me.

Am I a hater?

Now Listening To : Petula Clark-Anthology
Random Thought : I fell asleep for a few seconds at a stop light on the way home this morning.

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